


Liberation

by turnaround



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: F/F, Fluff, dipper is a good bro really, dipper ships mabifica, pacifica struggles with wanting to tell mabel her feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-21
Updated: 2015-04-21
Packaged: 2018-03-25 02:22:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3793063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/turnaround/pseuds/turnaround
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are words left unsaid every year, until she doesn't have to keep to herself anymore.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Liberation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [VioletEclipse1314](https://archiveofourown.org/users/VioletEclipse1314/gifts).



> Dedicated to my amazing friend, Vi. I hope you like this. <3

She only hears about the twins leaving Gravity Falls a week after they do.

 

It's also when she realizes that school was going to start in only three more days, and that summer had flown by this year.

 

And when school does start, the hand on the clock moves more slower than she thought. Pacifica sits by the window, chewing on the end of her pen as she absentmindedly stares out the window and at the thicket of trees. Her focus is only directed at the ticking of the clock, but each second is a long wait.

 

How long did she have to wait until the next summer exactly?

 

 

//

 

 

Eventually summer does come. Pacifica is a year older now, and so is everybody else, but it's still the same people living in the same boring town. Maybe there are some changes here and there, but nothing too significant to note.

 

It's not until the middle of the summer that the twins return; she figures out from the Twitter update from that Wendy girl. (No, she hasn't been checking up on Wendy's Twitter every hour to see if the Pines twins had returned or not. But when she did read the tweet she was waiting for, her palms get too sweaty that she dropped her phone and had to get a new one.)

 

When she walks out of the building with her brand new iPhone, she suddenly stops and widens her eyes. Just how was she going to approach them when she couldn't last year even after fighting off the angry golf people and fleeing from the vengeful lumberjack? What was she even supposed to say to them?

 

Pacifica returns home that day, plops onto her bed, and screams into her pillow.

 

.

 

She is spared from growing agony a few days later when she walks down the cookie aisle of the supermarket and bumps right into Dipper Pines. He looks the same for the most part—same pine tree hat and same hairstyle, but he's wearing a regular white tee with khaki shorts and worn out sneakers with a pair of sunglasses perched on his hat. He's also some inches taller.

 

"Whoa, Pacifica," he says, standing up and fixing himself. He narrows his eyes when he looks at her still sitting on the ground. "Uh, so are you just gonna stare with your mouth open? Flies are going to buzz right in."

 

She blinks and then remembers that she's in public. Pacifica quickly gets up and lets out a short cough. "Yeah, well, I guess it's good to see you," she says, lamer than she hoped to sound.

 

He laughs, and she's reminded of the last summer when she stepped all over her parents' nice carpet with her muddy shoes.

 

"So, anyways, it's been awhile," Dipper starts, "and I know Mabel's gonna be happy to see you again. You should come over to the Mystery Shack some time. You know, catch up and all. She mentioned on our ride back last year how she should have called you up to make amends or something before we left."

 

She's Pacifica Northwest. She still has pride, and she wasn't going to show how excited and giddy she was to hear that from him. "Well," she says, careful not to sound transparent, "then you and Mabel will be seeing me in due time."

 

Dipper laughs again. "In due time it is."

 

She comes the next day though, this time in no disguise and without her face half-covered. She's greeted with the door opening and Mabel Pines giving her a toothy grin, still in her weird sweaters but free of braces. Hopefully the smile that is tugging at the ends of her lips isn't showing too much.

 

.

 

This summer is far too short since the twins only stayed for the second half of the season. But they get a lot done: catching up on their respective school adventures, having a fair match in mini golf (which Pacifica won in the end, and Mabel laughed at the joy of it all), having sleepovers in the Mystery Shack that Dipper willingly joined.

 

Those were only a few of their moments, and Pacifica says some stupid excuse about not being able to see them off at the bus stop. She's still not as close to the others whom the twins hang out with and she doesn't want to feel uncomfortable and out of place.

 

Dipper gets it, so he doesn't say anything and nods. He gives her a friendly hug and tells her that they'll have more time to hang out next summer. She nods and he goes off to pack the remaining of his things.

 

Mabel looks at her with a shaking smile, trying to put on the best front, but Pacifica knows Mabel. She knows Mabel wants to complain, to ask her to reconsider, but she doesn’t. She follows her brother’s actions, giving her a hug, but there’s more depth to it. Mabel’s hugs were always like that, holding so much more than just a regular one.

 

“I’m gonna miss you,” Mabel says softly.

 

Pacifica hugs her back, and she realizes that this is their first shared hug. “Me too, Mabel. It was fun.”

 

Mabel pulls herself back, showing off her signature goofy grin and her teary eyes. “Fun enough that you don’t want this summer to end?”

 

She decides to let Mabel have her moment, so Pacifica nods and smiles back. “Fun enough that I don’t want this summer to end,” she repeats.

 

Dipper’s shout for Mabel to come up to the attic reminds them that things were set to eventually come to an end.

 

Mabel chuckles. “I guess I’d better go finish packing.” But she doesn’t move right away. They’re still in their half-hug, and her arms remain lingering there.

 

And they stay like that until they’re ready to part. Mabel gives her one last fond smile before she gets up and quietly walks up the stairs.

 

Summers end. Pacifica has been bitterly told that by the coming of fall leaves and the distance between California and Gravity Falls since last year.

 

.

 

She gets a postcard a week later that shows a mass of palm trees and with a bright sticker of a star plastered on the top corner--Mabel’s recognizable handiwork. On the other side is one side full of blue letters and the other with flashy pink.

 

_Dummy! You’d think I would never contact you during the boring seasons that are not summer? Baah, you thought wrong!!! You can’t escape from us that easily, Pacifica!_

 

There is laughter ringing in the Northwest mansion.

 

 

//

 

 

It’s the last day of school, and Pacifica ignores everything around her except for the ticking of the clock. Only a few more minutes until she’s let out of the class and she can go straight to the bus station to see Mabel and Dipper. She promised them, in their last exchange of postcards, that she would personally go pick them up to make up for not seeing them off last summer.

 

Her eyes light up when the minute hand reaches the twelve and the bell rings. She rushes out, ignoring the cries of her friends, and runs to the station without a wasted second. Time is precious once the summer season begins.

 

There they are. Pacifica stops some meters away from the bench they are sitting at and silently watches them conversing to themselves. They laugh at something Mabel says, probably something silly, and her breath hitches at her throat.

 

They’re really there, she thinks.

 

Dipper blinks suddenly and he looks straight in her direction. He whispers to Mabel, who follows her brother’s gaze. A giant smile soon replaces her shocked expression. Dipper is pushed to the ground when Mabel’s backpack is hurled at him and Pacifica stays where she is, opening her arms to catch the shooting star running towards her.

 

They laugh when they hit the ground and life feels so wonderful again.

 

“Oh my gosh!” Mabel shrieks excitedly when she takes a good look at Pacifica. “You got braces!”

 

.

 

"...three, four, five! Here we go!"

 

Pacifica observes the sweaters carefully; the first one is purple and has clusters of yellow stars grouped at the bottom corner, the second one is lavender and has a golden P in the middle, the third one is pink and has the words "if lost return to Mabel Pines" sewed to it, the fourth one is a nice shade of aqua, and the last one is a pale yellow and has small drawings of her, Mabel, and Dipper on the bottom.

 

"If lost return to Mabel Pines?" Pacifica reads quizzically, and raises an eyebrow. "Really, Mabel?"

 

"Yeah!" Mabel says excitedly. "I have a sweater that says 'I'm Mabel Pines!' to match yours!"

 

Despite wanting to groan, she doesn't. Mabel didn't deserve that after all the time and effort she put to making these sweaters. It was a nice surprise since Mabel had kept quiet about this in her postcards, and of course Dipper didn't mention it either.

 

"If I had known I was going to get something, I would've gotten you something, too," Pacifica says, putting the sweaters besides her and gives a fond look to Mabel. "I really appreciate this. Thanks, Mabel."

 

"Aw." Mabel playfully punches Pacifica's shoulder. "You don't have to get me anything. I'm just glad that you like them. It was something I wanted to do for a while for you, actually."

 

"For a while?"

 

At that, Mabel grins. "Ever since I first met you," she says. "I knew you were the perfect model for my sweaters!"

 

Pacifica shakes her head, but Mabel is happy. That's all that matters.

 

.

 

Mabel had learned to make pancakes back at home, and though Pacifica was wary of trying them because of the legendary Mabel Juice that she had heard was capable of bringing the best of foes to their knees, Dipper confirms that they are safe to have. So they have breakfast at the shack and Pacifica feels right at home and right in place.

 

(It's also when she accidentally calls Stan "Grunkle Stan" and Stan ruffles her hair for the first time.)

 

Unfortunately for her and Dipper, pancake pieces get stuck in their braces. Pacifica picks with her fork and Dipper with his tongue.

 

"Mabel, you're so lucky that you're braces-free now," Pacifica says, now working on getting the last piece out. She rolls her eyes when Dipper yelps from getting slightly cut from the metal.

 

"That's why I told you many times to not pick at food with your tongue, Bro Bro," Mabel scolds with a laugh. "But you know, guys, I kind of miss my braces. They were my most charming feature!"

 

Pacifica finally succeeds at removing the stubborn piece of mushed pancake. She passes one of the unused forks and passes it to Dipper, who groans at his defeat and reluctantly takes the silverware.

 

She turns back to Mabel and softens her gaze. "Out of all of us, you did look the best in braces," she agrees, picturing Mabel from last year and her smile grows gentler. "You pulled off smiles really well, unlike your brother."

 

Dipper scoffs. "You two," he says, pointing his fork at the two girls back and forth several times, "really need to get a room."

 

Pacifica feels her cheeks growing warm, and she wants to hide in embarrassment when she realizes that it physically shows and goes unnoticed by Dipper. Lucky for her, Mabel doesn't look at her direction and misses the intended meaning of his words and retorts excitedly,

 

"Maybe Pacifica should move in and take your place, then!"

 

Dipper explodes in laughter after that and Pacifica gets up while lifting her sleeve up, ready to punch the daylight out of him. That's an exaggeration of course, but she does manage to cause damage by punching him fairly on the arm.

 

Her secret is exposed to one sibling that morning, but it's the most familial moment she had ever experienced. Her mansion was beginning to feel less like a home and the Mystery Shack was beginning to look and feel more like one.

 

.

 

She's standing with the rest of them at the bus stop this time. It's time to say goodbye again to her two best friends, but she knows by now that they'll return for sure next summer and they all agree to send postcards to each other again.

 

Mabel hugs Grunkle Stan first, and he's fighting the tears from falling down his face. Pacifica knows she has to tease the old man about it later. Surprisingly, Dipper goes to hug her before Soos or Wendy.

 

"Mabel's happy that you're warming up to the crew, especially Candy and Grenda," he says to her after their hug with a proud smile.

 

Pacifica crosses her arms. "You know I would do that much for Mabel." However, she cannot hide the smile that forms. "And, well, those two are pretty cool once you get to know them."

 

Dipper laughs. "We don't hang out with bad people, you know." His smile softens as he places a hand on her shoulder. "Keep writing to her. She gets excited whenever you reply, Pacifica. And it'll help you in the long run."

 

She narrows her gaze at him. "And I trust that you won't tell her?"

 

"My lips are sealed." And he confirms it by sliding his pinched fingers over his mouth and making a locking motion.

 

Wendy jokes, saying that she thought that lip-lock was an insider between them, and Dipper goes to her direction, not before giving Pacifica one last wink. Which she did not need because she had to inwardly gag.

 

Mabel walks over to her, laughing merrily. "Dip Dop did something weird?" she asks.

 

She's not sure if she can fight back the tears that are beginning to build up. It would only take a few minutes, she reminds herself. Only a little bit more to hold it in, and then she would be allowed to go back to her mansion and cry as she craves for one more hug with her best friend.

 

It's hard to hold heavy emotions in, but she manages to. Pacifica had been carrying on a mask throughout her life as a Northwest, after all. "Just please tell your brother not to wink at all," she says with a sigh. "He needs more work on that."

 

Mabel sticks out her tongue, seemingly disgusted after giving herself a mental picture. "He's so embarrassing. He knows that himself, but he probably did it because he trusts you won't judge him."

 

Pacifica shrugs. "Whatever floats his boat. He always was the strange one."

 

"Really?" Mabel smiles, almost teasingly. "I thought I was that. You always did refer to me as the most strange girl you've ever known back when we were twelve. Did that change?"

 

She knows she's blushing, and she's hoping that Mabel remains oblivious to the meaning behind her flushed cheeks.

 

It is either she does or she doesn't; Mabel shows no sign of being aware or not, but Pacifica figures it's better than finding out what Mabel is thinking, if she even is.

 

"You're still strange," she finally says. "Just not Dipper's level of strange."

 

"Then I'll take that as a compliment!"

 

Mabel grins and Pacifica finds herself thanking the heavens that Mabel's grin is still as sunny as ever and she hopes that it doesn't change.

 

"The bus will be here soon." Mabel's grin falls, but a sad, fond smile is still set on her face. "Next year, then?"

 

"Yeah." Her voice almost cracks. "Next year, I'll pick you and Dipper up just like last time."

 

Mabel holds up a pinky, and Pacifica seals the promise without hesitation. Even just a sweet touch of one finger is enough to send butterflies.

 

They flutter around for months.

 

.

 

Around springtime she gets a postcard from the twins in which they ask if she can write down her cellphone number in her next reply. She does and a week later she gets a text from an unknown number.

 

_Hey, Pacifica! It's me, Dipper aka your future brother-in-law. Mabel was being dumb and thought she could use her glitter gun to "beautify" her phone but broke it and she has to wait until right before summer to get a new one. But it's not the end of the world; you'll just have to put up with me for now! Isn't that great?_

That definitely sounded like a Mabel thing to do, no doubt. But waiting is almost no deal for her; she has been waiting for their return since twelve, so a few more was nothing.

 

Though, she now had to plan to kill Dipper. Now his teasing would meet no end.

 

(She secretly likes the idea of him being her brother-in-law.)

 

 

//

 

 

 

This year, Pacifica is more anxious than excited.

 

She sat at the bus stop, and made marks on the dirt with her shoe. Honestly, she had skipped school just so she could sit at the bus stop and mentally prepare herself for their coming. Dipper texted her earlier, telling her that she shouldn't feel nervous because Mabel was practically jumping in her seat, consumed with excitement to see her.

 

It was more of the fact that Pacifica had finally decided to stop leaving so many things unsaid after every summer, and finally confess everything she had wished to say since the beginning.

 

She had told Dipper a few days that she had finally come to this resolution, to which he responded saying he could not be any more proud of her. He reassured her, saying things will turn out okay because he was Mabel's brother. She had told Candy and Grenda, too, and they said that things will work out because they knew Mabel so well.

 

She hears tires from a distance. Pacifica looks up to see the bus coming closer from the horizon and her heart speeds up.

 

"Pacifica Northwest!"

 

Pacifica blinks, knowing fully well that it was Mabel's voice. She narrows her eyes and sees that it was really was Mabel, who stuck half her body from out the window, with Dipper hopefully supporting her from inside of the bus to prevent any falling. She is holding a megaphone in one hand and waving profusely with the other.

 

"Will you be my girlfriend?!"

 

She's coughing horribly now, and once she finishes the bottle of water that she has in her book bag, the bus comes to a steady halt in front of her. Mabel is still at the window and grinning widely.

 

Dipper opens the next window and rolls his eyes at her. "Told you that you didn't have to be so nervous," he says with a winning scoff. "You both really need to learn to say what's on your minds instead of keeping it in. You two probably could have been dating already since two summers ago or something."

 

"Just get the fishing line, Bro!" Mabel hisses to him, shooting him a light glare.

 

He does so, not before laughing. Pacifica widens her eyes when Dipper lowers the hook to her level and on the hook is a ring that's most likely fake but to Pacifica it's worth more than a thousand suns.

 

"You're such a goof," she manages to say through choked words, taking the ring and putting it on her ring finger. It fit perfectly.

 

"Of course I'll be your girlfriend, Mabel Pines."

 

The next minutes happens in a blur. Dipper is still in the bus, sprawled on the seat after having the megaphone being thrown at him so suddenly while Pacifica is on the floor after being hugged aggressively by Mabel.

 

They might have been together earlier if she found the courage to speak up, but this is still perfect. Mabel is as warm as ever, and now there is nothing more left to keep to herself. It’s liberating.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I need more Pacifica and Dipper in braces to be honest.


End file.
